It was a tough start for the Detroit Red Wings as the IIHF World Championship got underway Friday.
In Cologne, Germany, Jimmy Howard made 25 saves but it wasn’t enough as the United States was edged 2-1 by the host country.
“It was a fantastic environment tonight,… said Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill, head coach of the U.S. team. “I thought we got better as the game went on.
“We’re disappointed, obviously, but this tournament is a process and we’ll build on this game.…
Connor Murphy of the Arizona Coyotes, paired on defense with Danny DeKeyser, scored the lone goal for the Americans, who play Sunday against Denmark.
DeKeyser finished the game plus-one and logged 15:21 of ice time. Wings center Dylan Larkin drew an assist and was plus-one in 19:26 of work.
Blashill had heard good things ahead of time about the German team, so he wasn’t surprised by their performance.
“Germany is a team that plays a very tight defensive style and what I found in talking to lots of other people is most of the other countries are real good defensively and real good on the power play, so it’s real hard to score on them and they’re able to score at times on the power play.
“I think Germany presents a unique challenge because of the fact they’re on their home soil.…
In Paris, Wings goalie Petr Mrazek made 24 shots as the Czech Republic fell 4-1 to Canada. Wings equipment manager Paul Boyer is filling the same role with the Canadian team.
“Certainly, Canada has won it the last couple years and they’ll have another real good roster, so they’ll be somebody that everybody will need to reckon with,… Blashill said. “In our pool, Russia historically has had real good World Championship teams. Sweden has had some real good World Championship teams.…
Abby Out One Wing who thought he’d be in the American lineup isn’t. Forward Justin Abdelkader was told not to play in the worlds after he underwent treatment on a knee injury following the conclusion of Detroit’s season.
“The recommendation from doctors was that at this time rest is the most important thing,… Blashill said. “He needed that rest to put himself in the right position to train this summer and be as ready as he can be for next year.
“Abby wanted to play, but given that diagnosis and recommendation from the doctors, it wasn’t the right thing.…
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